Font Size
Psalm 139:1-6
New English Translation
Psalm 139:1-6
New English Translation
Psalm 139[a]
For the music director, a psalm of David.
139 O Lord, you examine me[b] and know me.
2 You know when I sit down and when I get up;
even from far away you understand my motives.
3 You carefully observe me when I travel or when I lie down to rest;[c]
you are aware of everything I do.[d]
4 Certainly[e] my tongue does not frame a word
without you, O Lord, being thoroughly aware of it.[f]
5 You squeeze me in from behind and in front;
you place your hand on me.
6 Your knowledge is beyond my comprehension;
it is so far beyond me, I am unable to fathom it.[g]
Footnotes
- Psalm 139:1 sn Psalm 139. The psalmist acknowledges that God, who created him, is aware of his every action and thought. He invites God to examine his motives, for he is confident they are pure.
- Psalm 139:1 tn The statement is understood as generalizing—the psalmist describes what God typically does.
- Psalm 139:3 tn Heb “my traveling and my lying down you measure.” The verb זָרָה (zarah, “to measure”) is probably here a denominative from זֶרֶת (zeret, “a span; a measure”), though some derive it from זָרָה (zarat, “to winnow; to sift”; see BDB 279-80 s.v. זָרָה).
- Psalm 139:3 tn Heb “all my ways.”
- Psalm 139:4 tn Or “for.”
- Psalm 139:4 tn Heb “look, O Lord, you know all of it.”
- Psalm 139:6 tn Heb “too amazing [is this] knowledge for me, it is elevated, I cannot attain to it.”
New English Translation (NET)
NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2017 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.